Lake Superior Provincial Park -- Peat Mountain (3-24-07)

A VERY early spring hike I took up Peat Mountain in Lake Superior Provincial Park in northern Ontario. Still a heck of a lot of snow left which made it a difficult hike. It was still beautiful though! The drive back was awesome also, check out the shots towards the end of the album for shots along scenic Highway 17 north of Sault Ste. Marie...

Lake Superior Provincial Park -- Peat Mountain, ON (3-24-07)

Lake Superior Provencial Park - Entering the park it was downpouring so I headed north to Wawa for lunch...

Old Woman Bay

The rain soon broke and I headed south back into the park...this is Old Woman Bay...

Old Woman Bay

Old Woman Bay

Lake Superior Provincial Park

Do I see blue sky?!

Old Woman Bay

Another shot of Old Woman Bay through the trees...

Trans Canada Highway

Driving the Trans Canada through Lake Superior Provential Park

Rabbit Blanket Lake

A pretty view of Peat Mountain rising above Rabbit Blanket Lake.

Peat Mountain Trailhead

Yeah, there was still a bit of snow around here...it was going to be a tiring hike from the start.

Peat Mountain Trail

The first part of the trail consisted of a tiring series of ups and downs...

Peat Mountain Trail

The trail register showed I was only the 22nd hiker on the trail THIS YEAR!

Peat Mountain Trail

11 km of steep grades, wet areas, and uneven terrian...BRING IT ON!!!

Peat Mountain Trail

This would be my intended path...

Peat Mountain Trail

In the lower elevations the trail was enveloped in beautiful Cedar groves...

Peat Mountain Trail

Starting to climb...

Peat Mountain Trail

The compacted snow under the trail was nice enough to walk on but take one step off and I was up to my knees in wet snow...

Peat Mountain Trail

Winter Woods

Peat Mountain Trail

Nature's Tenacity

Peat Mountain Trail

Starting to get hilly...

Peat Mountain Trail

Going up...

Peat Mountain Trail

Looking back down one of the first steep climbs along the trail...

Peat Mountain Trail

Following a ridge...

Peat Mountain Trail

So far, so good...

Peat Mountain Trail

Right about here is where I lost the trail the first time. Just beyond the sign the worn path I was following faded away...so I headed up the hill to look for it...

Peat Mountain Trail

Thank God, a trail blaze!

Peat Mountain Trail

On the trail again was what I assumed (mistakenly, as it turned out) to be the open ledges of the summit...

Peat Mountain Trail

A closer shot of what ended up not being the summit...

Peat Mountain Trail

Water Crossing...

Peat Mountain Trail

Time to play the "Find the Trail" Game!!! Beside me was a big blue trail blaze...ahead of me was this...you tell me where to head! I ended up ascending the hill here up the left-hand slope...

Bushwhack

Off-trail travel was rough. The woods were remarkably thick and the deep snow combined with the steep slope was torture...

Bushwhack

Snowshoes don't work so well on rock, so I stopped here and took 'em off before continuing up...

Bushwhack

After all that climbing I was a bit distressed to find that the real summit was still a ways away...

Bushwhack

Looking down to frozen Peat Lake...

Bushwhack

That's Rabbit Blanket Lake in the background...where I started.

Bushwhack

At the top I was greetied with this stunning panorama to the south. Rabbit Blanket Lake (where I started) is to the left with Peat Lake and (to my dismay) still higher Peat Mountain to the right...

Bushwhack

Another shot of Peat Mountain and Peat Lake below...

Bushwhack

I was a bit concerned that I didn't find the trail at the top of this outcrop...the summit looked that much farther away knowing I may not have a trail to follow up it...

Bushwhack

Rabbit Blanket Lake

Bushwhack

Looking north over the hills of northern Ontario...

Bushwhack

I was a bit miffed to discover the ridge I'd climbed wasn't even connected to the summit ridge. I had to climb/slide my way down into this gully to continue...

Peat Mountain Trail

You have no idea how excited I was to see this blaze...

Peat Mountain Trail

My excitement was short-lived as I discovered the trail was untracked which was going to make for VERY tough going...

Peat Mountain Trail

I can't express how hard this hill was to climb. The only way to explain it would be to ask you to strap 10-pound weights to each of your feet, 15-pounds to your back, don full winter clothing, and climb some VERY steep steps for about an hour...ENJOY!!!

Peat Mountain Trail

Ahhh...an overlook...let's take a peak...

Peat Mountain Trail

One of the first "official" overlooks I came to...

Peat Mountain Trail

The views through the trees were amazing...

Peat Mountain Trail

At this point I was really hoping this was the real summit...

Peat Mountain Summit - 1,620'

Welcome to the top of Peat Mountain, elevation 1620'!

Peat Mountain Summit - 1,620'

Peat Mountain Summit - I could just see Lake Superior beyond the ridges to the north. Beyond the lake are the unpopulated hills that stretch farther north into Pukaskwa National Park...